Dear Self Poem by Pardy Mupfumbu

Dear Self
Be kind to yourself,
as you are with others.
You have these grand expectations of yourself
and at times, those around you.
It's good to have goals
and hunger for betterment,
but you must also be
vigilant to keep them realistic
Because, while you are indeed fierce and strong-willed,
you are also soft
and at times, fragile.
You are human
But that doesn't mean
you are without superpowers.
Your sensitivity is your greatest gift,
but without training,
can also be your greatest downfall
You must learn to master your craft.
This means to be patient with yourself as you would with others,
To show compassion
as you would with others,
To show love, grace and humility to yourself.
This in practice is to truly understand and epitomise,
that self-care is not selfish
That it is okay to say no
or to ask for help,
Or to be truly vulnerable
To embrace the lows;
for making the highs even
sweeter
To acknowledge that fear is
the root cause of bitterness and resentment
To let the good wash over you,
the same as the bad
And embrace the micro changes,
as the meta stays the same;
To believe you are worthy of a great love,
the same as you believe
another's worthy of yours
To embody the idiom
that one can only truly
love another,
after they learn to love themself
And thus allow yourself
the hard-earned victory of grounded, stable understanding
To know the difference between
support and advice,
love and hate
friendships and partnerships
To have faith that you will
find your way,
because you will;
Because you live your life
with generosity and authenticity.
This is my vision for you,
that you will make this your reality.